Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone! We hope you all had safe and happy holidays! Dave and I had a very memorable Christmas and were very fortunate that we could celebrate our first holiday away from the states with family!  We traveled to Poitiers, France where Dave's aunt and uncle live along with his 3 cousins.  We were sad to leave Katy (our pup) but knew she was in great hands.  A woman we befriended at the local dog park volunteered to watch her for the 5 days we spent away  She has a german shepherd mix who is a month older than Katy and they get along great and we were very thankful not to have to board her in a kennel. We received text massages and emails with updates each day of the two dogs playing.

 

We left London and flew to Poitiers on the 22nd just in time for Pablo's 13th birthday.  We celebrated with a delicious dinner his mom made us and  one of the best birthday cakes we have tasted!  The French sure don't mess around with their sweets!  Pablo received a guitar peddle from his parents and put on a show for us.  He is an amazing self taught electric guitar player, he played some tunes from Jimi Hendricks and the Red Hot Chili Peppers!

On Christmas Eve we took a walk around the town and were able to see some of the local houses and castles.  I loved all the doors each house had and took many pictures!  

Along with the walk we window shopped and walked through the Marché, where the locals buy all their fresh produce and meats. Gina bought duck for dinner, and Jean Claude made a peppercorn cream sauce that was out of this world.

Christmas in France was lovely of course, and the food was again the centerpiece of the day. We had oysters, foie gras and a beautiful pork roast. Gina’s homemade foie gras cannot be understated – it was pure and rich awesomeness.

We left on Monday (UK's Boxing Day) and rented a car and drove through the French countryside north to Dieppe.  Dieppe took about 6 hours to get to and it’s a a port city on the English Channel, famous for its scallops. It also has a popular pebbled beach, a 15th-century castle and the churches of Saint-Jacques and Saint-Remi. On our way we drove through Normandy which was absolutely beautiful.  We arrived just in time for dinner and walked to a very cute restaurant that was recommended by the hotel. We had one of the best meals - Dave had a 4 course meal and I had a 3 course meal...if only I could eat the  local cheese I would have had the 4th course :) We ate fresh crab, mussels and yummy desserts.  

The next morning we drove for 2 more hours to Calais to catch the ferry to Dover to cross the channel and head home.  The ferry we took was very enjoyable and such a nice way to travel!  We were able to see the white cliffs of Dover and float across the English channel while enjoying yet another yummy meal.  Once we landed we rented a car and drove 2 more hours to London where we were reunited with Katy!  Our pack was back together :)

New Years was a quiet one for us.  We had a nice dinner and a fruit cobbler for desert and watched the amazing firework show on the tele.  It was one of the most spectacular ones we have seem as the city shot fireworks out of Big Ben and off of the London Eye.  The show lasted a good 10 minutes and was all choreographed to music. It’s going to be a great year here in London with the Queens Diamond Jubilee (The forthcoming international celebration in 2012 marking the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II to the thrones of seven countries) the summer Olympics, our family and friends visiting us, and the arrival of our baby girl!

Click here to see London 2012 Fireworks!

We can’t wait to meet little Josie Allene and are so excited to see what this new year brings us.  


Happy New Year to you all!


Love, 
The Feinsteins